I
read somewhere that Mrs Takata only attuned 22 students in all
her years of of Reiki practice. How come?

Actually,
Takata Sensei initiated a great many level 1 and level 2 students
over the years* (the exact numbers are unknown). However it was
not until the 1970's that she initiated her first student to 'Master'
level. It is generally acknowledged that she only trained 22 students
to the level of 'Master' - not 22 students in total.

*
[It has recently been suggested that Yuji Onuki who apparently
taught 'Usui-Do' to Dave King in 1971 may have possibly been one
of Takata-Sensei's level 2 students...]

I
was shown an attunement where the Reiki Master drew symbols on
the student's middle fingers. Is this a standard practice?

It
is currently believed by many researchers that Reiki was strongly
influenced by elements of Mikkyo (esoteric) Japanese Buddhist
practice. Mikkyo speaks of a Buddhist elemental system known as
'godai': the 'Five Elements' (-not to be confused with the Chinese
Five Elements system).

Everything
in the universe is perceived to be a manifestation of five great
elemental 'building blocks'. - referred to as: Earth, Water, Fire,
Wind/Air, and Void/Sky/Ether. Earth gives substance; Water holds
things together; Fire heats or transforms; Wind/Air is responsible
for movement; & Void/Sky/Ether connects with the creative
source.

In
the godai system, the middle finger is seen to be directly connected
with 'ka' - elemental Fire - and in particular, with heat in the
body

Picking
up on this point, some Reiki practitioners believe that attuning
the middle finger directly will help increase 'ka' - the fire
element, and with it increase the 'hot hands' sensation which
is considered the sure sign that you have actually 'got' the attunement.

However
godai is all about a BALANCED interplay of all 5 elements - too
much Fire can increase the passions - but also increases aggression
and anger...
(so ideally, if people are working with finger-tip attunements,
they should attune all the fingers [and thumb] to maintain the
dynamic balance)

I
have heard that Mikao Usui's '5 Principles' were endorsed by the
Emperor Meiji, is there any actual evidence of this?

The
Meiji Emperor died in 1912. Now, while he is revered by many Japanese
people as being a great psychic, his psychic/precognitive powers
must have indeed been truly amazing if he endorsed the gokai
(5 Principles), as - according to the 'new' history of Reiki
- Usui Sensei is said to have only drafted his gokai in
or around April 1921.
However, it seems that an almost identical set of principles were
presented in a 1915 edition of a book entitled Kenzen no Genri
(Health Principles)

On
a website about Raku Kei Reiki they showed something called Kanji
Hand Positions. I thought kanji was the name for the characters
used to write Japanese, so why are the Hand Positions called Kanji?

Kanji
is indeed the name for the Chinese characters used in writing
Japanese.

The 'kanji hand positions' (sometimes called 'kanji mudras') used
in Raku Kei Reiki are supposed to be Tibetan meditative gestures.
However, while Tibetan Buddhism does make use of mudras, the specific
ones used in Raku Kei are actually drawn from a set of nine mudras
used in Japanese Ninja mystical practice.

A
handout provided by many Raku Kei Teachers shows photos - actually
taken from a book on Ninjitsu - of a young woman performing the
socalled 'kanji mudras'.

In another Ninjitsu book by the same author, under sections titled
"1st Kanji/Mudra", "2nd Kanji/Mudra", "3rd
Kanji/Mudra", etc, not only is each mudra described,
but there is also a depiction of a specific kanji character
to be drawn in the air while performing each mudra.

It
seems that "Kanji/Mudra" (indicating a kanji and
a mudra) was changed to the subtly different "Kanji Mudra"
(and later, Kanji Hand Position). Whether this was intentional
or was a misremberance of what had been read in the Ninjitsu book,
is unclear.

Can
you explain to me what exactly is this reiju. My teacher has never
mentioned it, but I heard someone mention it on a Reiki list.

Reiju
means: "to confer/receive a Spiritual Gift" and it is
said that Usui Sensei used a process known as Reiju (rather than
the 'Denju' Initiation/attunement process taught by Takata Sensei)
as a means of initiating and deepening the students connection
with the Reiki Phenomenon

The most common versions of 'reiju' found on the net are Japanese
Reiki Master Hiroshi Doi's reiju and a version supposed to have
come from some of Usui Sensei's surviving students (however, this
is in fact simply a slightly modified form of the Hiroshi Doi
reiju.)

For
a long time, it seems, most people were under the illusion that
the reiju taught by Doi was the process used by the Usui Reiki
Ryoho Gakkai (the original Reiki Organisation), and also by Usui
Sensei.

It
was some time before Doi pointed out that this was not the case.
It eventually transpired that this reiju was something created
by Doi himself 'in the spirit' of the Gakkai practice.

On
a related note, Hiroshi Doi learnt Barbara Ray's "Radiance
Technique" style of Reiki from Mieko Mitsui in Japan in the
late 1980's, and personally, I find it somewhat 'co-incidental'
that his reiju actually bears a striking resemblance to a version
of the short-form Reiki Treatment I learnt from a "Radiance
Technique" Reiki Instructor several years ago...

You
will find a version of the reiju process (- plus a link to the
short-form Reiki Treatment, for comparison purposes) here

I
would like to know, of the Japanese Reiki Techniques, which one
should I practice to increase my Reiki energy the most as well
as produce the greatest amount of heat in my hands?

But a word of advice, don't become fixated on the levels of heat
you feel in
your hands - some of the best healers I know have stone cold hands
- but
fiery-hot hearts...

Probably the best non-Reiki exercise for deepening the
quality of your Reiki practice is: Kokoro
no Kokyo

My
Reiki master taught me that the CKR power symbol should be drawn
clockwise to focus the energy, but now I have been told by another
teacher that this is a mirror image of the original CKR symbol
- and also that one version is for putting energy in and the other
for drawing energy out?

Over
the years since Takata-sensei's passing there have been many new
meanings and associations added to the four Usui Reiki symbols
(and also, it seems, elements of the original meanings have often
been removed or obscured - albeit unwittingly).
In addition to this, several people have made changes to the actual
forms of the symbols themselves [presumably in an attempt
to make them 'fit' with their own personal views & perceptions]

It
was not till the 1980's (after the death of Takata-sensei) that
mirror-image versons of the choku rei started appearing.Up to
this time there was only one choku rei - and it was always
drawn (from the top): from left to right, then the vertical
line down, and then an ANTIclockwise spiral inwards to the centre.

There
was no concept of drawing choku rei one way to 'put in'
energy and drawing a reversed or mirror-image version to 'draw
out energy' (for the simple reason that this was not what the
symbol was about)

The
first proto-version of the 'reversed' choku rei actually
seems to have originated (albeit unintentionally) with one of
Takata-sensei's master-level students: Iris Ishikuro.

Iris
was a follower of Johrei Healing (- an outgrowth of the Shumei
religion) and introduced a new symbol into her Reiki practice.
Named 'White Light', this symbol was a stylised version of a piece
of calligraphy sacred to Johrei and the Shumei.

The
proto-version of the reversed choku rei is actually part
of Iris's 'new' Reiki symbol

It
is in the lineages coming down via Iris that the reversed choku
rei in its 'proper' form seems to have originated, first
truly becoming popularised by Kathleen Milner as part of her Tera
Mai system.

To
see a copy of the 'proper', original, choku rei symbol actually
drawn by Takata Sensei, click here

Is
Reiki Jutsu a particular style of Reiki or just a term for Reiki
in general - in my Japanese dictionary it says jutsu means art
- so Reiki Jutsu is Reiki Art or Art of Reiki, am I right?

Yes
- the term Reiki Jutsu does translate as 'Art of Reiki', however
Reiki Jutsu is actually the name of a martial art (developed by
Karate Instructor Andy Wright) which combines elements of Reiki,
Qi Gung, Shotokan Karate & Ju Jutsu!

I have recently done my first degree in Reiki
and I have now heard several people say that I should remove my
watch, rings and other jewelry when doing Reiki - why is this?

Some
people say that jewelery can interfere with the 'energetic vibrations'
-however there does not seem to be any viable evidence to support
this claim.

There are, however a few valid reasons for removing jewelery
items prior to giving a Reiki treatment.

Firstly: on occasion, items of jewelery have been known to 'snagg'
on the client's clothing - and having to interrupt treatment in
order to cautiously disentangle yourself without pulling too many
threads in your clients designer sweater (- not to mention the
concern that the client might bill you for damages), can somewhat
'break' the soothing atmosphere of the treatment room.

Secondly: some practitioners have a tendency to suffer from 'bracelet,
bangle & bead overload' and many clients do not appreciate,
for example, having almost half a kilo of jewelery resting on
their head while receiving treatment on their face/eyes.

Thirdly:
(and this is also a reason clients are requested to wear non constricting
clothing, loosen belts, and take off their shoes) When the body
relaxes ( -a central response in Reiki treatment - for both practitioner
and client) blood flows towards the surface of the body, sub-cutaneous
blood-vessels dilate resulting in the production of surface heat
and various degrees of natural, temporary, swelling - particularly
of the hands and feet.

So, in the case of both practitioner and client, it is a good
idea to remove tight-fitting jewelery such as rings, and
either remove or at least loosen items such as watches. This is
partly for the sake of comfort; and also to avoid the even the
slightest inhibition of the circulation.

I know Mikao Usui is buried in Tokyo, Japan,
but do you know where is Mrs Takata buried?

Takata
Sensei was cremated and her ashes were interred at the Honpa Hongwanji
Hilo Betsuin in Hawaii, the oldest Jodo Shinshu (True Pure Land
sect) Buddhist organization in the West. [NOTE:
They have apparently been moved now to an undisclosed location
- presumably to deter Reiki-'pilgrims']

I
have been reading about reiki and the whole process of attunement
and there is something I just do not understand: this founder
of reiki, how was he "attuned"? nobody attuned him,
so can you "attune" yourself, in that case?

Certainly
it is true that no human being 'attuned' Usui-sensei to the specific
phenomenon that is the Reiki healing ability - but nor, for that
matter, did he 'attune' himself.

What we call an 'Attunement', whether it is to Reiki or any other
energy, power, or spiritual force, is essentially something you
receive - most commonly from another living being - i.e. someone
who is already attuned to that energy, power, or spiritual force.To use
an I.T. analogy, its a bit like having someone who possesses a
very specific program which enables them to interact with an energy/power/force,
download a copy of that program into your being.

Alternatively,
if you have a deep understanding, and a stout heart, you can attempt
to 'write your own program' as it were, by intentionally going
in search of an 'attunement experience'. This search might, for
example, involve something like the arduous Vision-Quest practices
found amongst several Native American peoples; or might involve
the Japanese shugyo practices: severe meditative, ascetic
& spiritual disciplines derived from Mikkyo (Esoteric Buddhist)
and Shinto tradition.
We are told that it was as a result of the life-threatening 21-day
shugyo practice Usui-sensei undertook on Kurama Yama that
he received an intense, spiritual Initiatorial experience
- one outcome of this being the manifestation of the abilities
we know as the Reiki Healing Phenomenon.

The
intentional search for an 'attunement experience' is usually considered
a difficult & potentially (psychologically) dangerous route,
but if successful, is said to result in a far more personal &
intensely spiritual experience.
[There are, admittedly, some rare cases of what is referred to
as 'spontaneous attunement' or 'spontaneous initiation' in which
an individual becomes 'attuned' to an energy, power, or spiritual
force quite unintentionally and for no perceivable reason]You
will also often hear people talking about 'self-attunement', but
generally the people in question have already been 'attuned' in
one or more different energetic disciplines, and are really talking
about 're-attunement'.

On
a related note:
While Usui-sensei received the 'Reiki Experience' independently
of 'human intervention', he may have also have received
other forms of initiation 'hand to hand' from practitioners with
other healing abilities.

Did
any of the people Mrs Takata made Reiki Masters make any Masters
of their own while she was still alive?

Yes.
While Takata-sensei Certified 22 people as Reiki Masters,
one of the 22, Beth Gray, was not actually initiated to
Level 3 by Takata-sensei herself, but by one of the other master-level
students - John Harvey Gray. After Takata-sensei's death,
Phyllis Furamoto was the first of the '22 Masters' to start initiating
students to master level. She initiated four Masters between Feb.1981
and April 1982.

Is
it true that Hawayo Takata used to run a health spa ?

Yes,
for a while in the mid 1950's, Takata Sensei owned a health spa
in La Jocinta, California; however it wasn't that long before
she sold up and returned to Hawaii.

How
many Reiki symbols are there? Some people seem to have only a
few, but I have heard that there are lots of different ones.

Technically, there are four symbols in the system of
Reiki developed by Usui-Sensei (-though some folks would have
us believe otherwise..)[See:
here for images of the symbols
and details of their significance and probable origin.]
However, since the early 1980's, several Reiki practitioners have
developed their own personalised 'styles' of Reiki - some adding
modified versions of the original four symbols, or incorporating
symbols from other spiritual/esoteric systems, and also adding
new, 'channeled', symbols from numerous diverse sources.

I
am a reiki master, but have never given an attunement- I am curious
as to how to empower images/objects so that they give reiki to
others. Any suggestions?

While
there are several ways of achieving this, I would like to suggest
that you really should begin with passing attunements/Reiju directly
to other living beings first, and develop both your confidence
and experience in this most sacred aspect of Reiki.

Of
course, anyone with even Level I Reiki can theoretically 'charge'
an item temporarily (i.e. suffuse it with Reiki). However, the
use of images/objects is really only a subsidiary method to 'usual'
Reiki practice.

Yes,
attuned items are helpful to 'reach' people with Reiki. But, for
many Level III's there is a risk the practice may become an impersonal
substitute for direct, consciously-intended work with living beings.
After all, Reiki is about Interaction
(- personally I feel this should, where possible, be face to face
- but that's just
me.).
But you have the HSZSN symbol; and equipped with this and the
other three, you can reach people wherever they are.

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The contents of this site is for general information only. James
Deacon does not necessarily endorse the methodology, techniques
or philosophy of individual modalities detailed herein, and accepts
no liability for the use or misuse of any practice or exercise
on this site, or ones linked to this site.